Or at least of other characters, since the Sugar Plum Fairy is not in the Mariinsky Ballet's The Nutcracker, which you can see in movie theaters Monday.

If movies are your thing and you need a little holiday cheer, check out the Mariinsky Ballet's (also known as the Kirov Ballet) production of Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker in 3-D playing at a theater near you on Monday, Dec. 3, for one day only, at 7:30 p.m. (some locations also have a 2 p.m. showing).

So, why add another Sugar Plum Fairy to the mix on screen when we have a multitude of live performances at our fingertips here in the Metroplex?

For starters, the carb-laden, fruited mystical creature is nowhere to be found in this revival of Vasily Vainonen's 1934 production performed in the very theater where Marius Petipa's original Nut debuted in 1892. If you're one of the many who are puzzled by this strange omission, it's worth pointing out that it's not a new phenomenon. Starting only a few decades after its inauguration, the ballet underwent several adaptations and the Fairy was the first to go.

Many other notable changes make this tale of a fantastic dream world an intriguing departure from the norm here in the United States.

First, the entire party scene has a very different mood. It's truncated a bit, as the live orchestra is given much more time to play before the action on stage happens. Costumes set the ballet in a French Baroque era, rather than the traditional 19th century Germany, which gives it a greater formality. Also contributing to that sense is the orderliness of the choreography. The children's dances are very complex, yet exceptionally well-rehearsed and precise. Entrances and exits (as if the guests are utilizing other rooms of the house for the party) clear the stage to focus attention on more important storytelling parts.

And the nutcracker…well, I don't know if you could even call it that. In place of the cylindrical, military-clad walnut-opener we see a doll which looks like the scary love-child of Rasputin and a garden gnome. Luckily, the prince into which it's later transformed bears no likeness.

After the clock strikes midnight, we're left to endure a long sequence of mice choreography. The arrival of the Rat King, or Mouse King (Soslan Kulaev) though, fades the dreariness. That dude knows how to make an entrance. Clean, deliberate choreography continues throughout the battle, which ends as it should—sayonara, vermin.

Masha (aka Clara) and the nutcracker soldier are transformed into older versions of themselves (Alina Somova and Vladimir Shklyarov, respectively) with a budding romance. The music which typically signifies the snow pas de deux is used to develop the love story even more. Snowflakes are still around, however, to perform their hummingbird-fast footwork and light-as-a-feather waltzes.

While it's unclear where exactly the next section takes place (called Act III here), the same divertissements appear—some with slight changes, of course.

The Spanish, Chinese, and Mirliton variations all contain the expected moods and exuberant movement qualities. The Arabian and Russian segments (typically the audience favorites) are lackluster.

The former ditches the sensual duet in favor of a harem of sorts, only without the glamour and mystique. Not only does it not live up to the seductive music, it becomes downright dreary. The lack of excitement in the Russian variation is the most perplexing—it's their native dance, yet completely disappoints.

The Waltz of the Flowers really suffers from the camera work, which for the most part has done a decent job of re-creating a live performance. A large cast of men and women seamlessly weave in and out of each all while dancing intricately controlled choreography. The beauty of the dazzling floor patterns, however, gets lost in the editing.

The adaptations as a whole will probably bring about mixed reactions, depending on one's preferences. I can, however, make a solid recommendation for this film for one reason: It's Russian ballet. If you have never seen Russian dancers, they are sight to behold. Think of it as extreme ballet. However high you can lift your arabesque or attitude, they can lift it higher. Ensemble sections are meticulously rehearsed, so that each dancer looks like a carbon copy of the other. The visual splendor of it all, even on film, is brilliant.

And it's in 3-D, so you can feel as if you're floating like a flower or soaring like a snowflake.

◊ Here's a video preview (see below for local locations):

◊ The Kirov Ballet's The Nutcracker in 3-D, filmed at the Marinsky Theatre, screens at 2 and 7 p.m. on Monday, Dec. 3 at the following North Texas movie theaters (not all show it in RealD 3-D, so check FathomEvents to find one that does):

AMC Northpark (Dallas)

AMC Parks at Arlington

Cinemark 17 and IMAX (Dallas)

Cinemark Legacy and XD (Plano)

cinemark Tinseltown Grapevine Movies 17

Cinemark USA Cedar Hill

Cinemark Allen 16

Cinemark Movies 15 Vista Ridge (Lewisville)

Cinemark Frisco Square and XD

Cinemark Denton

Cinemark Alliance Town Center and XD

Hollywood Movies 14 (Burleson)

Rave Northeast Mall (Hurst)

Rave Ridgmar 13 (Fort Worth)

Regal Fossil Creek (Fort Worth)

Regal Galaxy Theatre (Dallas)

Comments:

Steve writes:Friday, December 20 at 4:56PM

Attended this last night: very good and accurate review. I will point out that, inline with your early mention of lost originality, Masha (Clara) was the only child who wanted the nutcracker. Hence, its ugliness. Were it our contemporary concept of a dashing soldier in red and gold, every girl would have wanted it. Also, I found Alexandra Korshunova (young Masha) more engaging than the prima donna, whose lust for applause was tiresome. Korshunova's performance was not only fluid and professional, her ability to go beyond the role and have such fun with it was contagious, and I hated to see act II take her away.

Thank you for visiting TheaterJones.com, a division of Metrpolitan Arts Media, Inc. If you experience any difficulties with this site, please contact
the site administrator. All material contained within this website is copyright (c) 2009-
2018 Metropolitan Arts Media, Inc. To inquire about advertising on our site, please use the comment form. You can review our
Privacy Policy here.

Please complete some of the basic information below to sign up for our weekly newsletter. TheaterJones will NEVER sell, share, hand over to WikiLeaks or leave any of your information in an airport taxi. We value your privacy and our own. Your date of birth is required to ensure all users are at least 13 years of age in accordance with our policies and state and federal laws. We ask for your ZIP code to determine certain eligibilities and for demographic purposes, but we will not use any personal, identifiable information.

Use any or all of the options below to search through all of reviews, interviews, features and special sections. If you are looking for a an event, use the calendar section of this website. This search will not search through the calendar.